The 24-year-old middle-order batsman, who will be available for all formats of the game, has penned a two-year contract committing him to the club until the end of the 2020 season.

"I've wanted to play in England for a while," said Du Plooy, who will make his debut in Friday's One-Day Cup opener against Northamptonshire.

"The squad have made a good start. I want to score runs and do well."

Du Plooy was the leading run-scorer for Northerns in South Africa's Provincial One-Day Challenge with 595 runs at an average of 74.12, including three centuries and two half-centuries.

He has amassed over 2,693 runs in first-class cricket at an average of 48.08 and made his last appearance for Northerns on Sunday in their drawn Provincial Three-Day Cup Final against Eastern Province at Port Elizabeth.

"We've been monitoring his progress for a while now," said Derbyshire director of cricket Dave Houghton. "And we've been very impressed with what we've seen. His recent form speaks for itself."

Kolpak contracts are signed by foreign-born players whose countries have associate trade agreements with the European Union, using a European Court ruling to avoid counting against the quota of one overseas player per club.